Label of love

For a smaller brewery, Black Label is throwing a pretty big birthday party on Saturday.

It will have 15 of its own beers on tap for its first anniversary celebration starting at 1 p.m., including the brand-new Tropical Thunder – full of fruity Amarillo, Citra and Sorachi Ace hops, following the current fruit-forward IPA trend.

“It’s way different than any IPA we’ve done before,” says co-owner/brewer Dan Dvorak. “We decided to throw our hat in the ring and see if we can make a good one, too.”

Known for malty, more sessionable beers, Black Label recently released a pair of big boys: the Monstrosity IPA (9.6 percent alcohol by volume) and a Gingerbread Winter Warmer (9.1). Those will also be pouring Saturday along with another newer arrival, the popular Cocoa Porter, brewed with Ecuadoran cocoa nibs.

You’ll get $3 pints all day, and $10 growler fills. Live music by Kevin Partridge and Uncle B starts at 6.

Neighboring Common Crumb bakery, also marking its first year of operation in the Saranac Commons complex on the east end of downtown, will have macarons made with the Tropical Thunder hops as well as bread baked with spent brewing grains.

While there’s been a learning curve stepping up from homebrewing to a four-barrel professional system, Dvorak says, “We’re getting the hang of it now.”

He’s particularly proud of the brewery’s charitable efforts during the first year, including a fundraiser for firefighter relief during the late-summer wildfires, a fall fresh-hop Pink Grapefruit pale to support breast cancer research, and an ongoing Lands Council Pale Ale that benefits the environmental organization located next door in the Community Building.

“We did some different things to help bring the community together,” Dvorak says.

Another highlight, he adds, is “all the new people we’ve met, the customers who have become regulars, who we see every week. It’s been awesome getting to know them.”

For its second year, the brewery has its sights set on winning fans beyond the taproom, by broadening outside distribution to more than the current half-dozen accounts.

“A lot of it is just getting what we’ve got going a little more efficiently,” Dvorak says. With additional kegs and cold storage, he says, “We could be brewing a lot more.”